


Sleep

by AnnaCrimson



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Affection, Bonding, Comfort, Cute, Drama, F/M, Harry Potter is Bad at Feelings, Insomnia, Loneliness, Love Triangles, No Sex, POV Harry Potter, Rated T because I'm not taking any chances, References to Canon, Romance, Sharing a Bed, Talking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-19
Updated: 2020-07-19
Packaged: 2021-03-05 02:02:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,562
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25386499
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnnaCrimson/pseuds/AnnaCrimson
Summary: All you who sleep tonight, far from the ones you love, no hand to left or right and emptiness above - Know that you aren't alone, the whole world shares your tears, some for two nights or one, and some for all their years.Harry Potter is alone in the Gryffindor common room at night-time as usual, when somebody he didn't know he needed shows up.
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Harry Potter, Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley, Lavender Brown/Ron Weasley
Comments: 2
Kudos: 22





	Sleep

“Sometimes I escape  
To a far away place  
Where the screams are muffled  
And the tears dry up  
Where my memories can slowly fade away  
Today I went to that place  
And tonight I have to return  
To my reality  
Where the screams take place  
The tears turn red  
And the memories become nightmares”  
Rain-drops pounded against the window panes as a chilly breeze swept through the air, painting an illuminating picture for the sky amongst the twinkling stars and partially obscured moon. Darting and complex silhouettes absorbed the cloudy surface, reigning nightmares and illusions. Fierce, cold, brutal, descending into a rather palliative sensation from the point of view of the students currently residing in Hogwarts, the majority of them having fallen asleep as it was night-time and past curfew, ushered by the heavy rain, a cacophony of meaningless noise, as if it were singing a lullaby and solacing them.  
The Gryffindor common room was warm and gave off a pleasant cinnamon scent, though deprived of all students but one. The fierce crimson flames in the fireplace were crackling merrily as Harry, dressed in a white basic T-shirt and black sweatpants, was sitting alone with his knees up to his chest so as to warm himself even more on a nearby armchair, re-reading Quidditch Through the Ages, setting aside his copy of Advanced Potion Making, previously owned by “the Half-Blood Prince”, for a mere second, although he was anticipating the next time he would discover some fun and useful new spells by the likes of Muffliato. Harry thought the prince as very talented, having learned much more from him than from the slimy and greasy-haired Professor, Severus Snape.  
Harry grinned to himself at the thought, though shoving those thoughts aside as he was once again engulfed in the world of Quidditch, a diverse world in which he could reign freely, his passion, his peace and his calm.  
His schedule, accompanied by his new title of “the Chosen One” were overwhelming him way too much to his dismay. He would stay up every night and seize the opportunity just to get some time alone, isolated from everyone else and his surroundings. Unlike everyone else, he never looked forward to sleep. He despised it. Although he was always stressed and overloaded with work and responsibilities, more than most students, he solemnly slept. For when he attempted to fall asleep, in the depths of his mind, darkness and traumatizing memories lurked, tearing at the chords of his sanity. When he slept, he experienced agonizing nightmares of the utmost terror, waking to find his dear classmates peering down at him in tense apprehension and peculiarity, some muttering under their breaths about not being able to fall asleep due to high-pitched screams.  
Sometimes he could spend hours gazing up at the beautiful night scenery and admiring the stars, sometimes he would revise all night, sometimes he would read his favourite books, sometimes he would just hug himself to feel some sort of affection, even if it did sound eccentric and desperate. It replaced the ominous thoughts and anxiety sprouting darkness from within with some form of warmth and comfort, a feeling he had to learn to embrace. It reminded him that no matter what, he always had himself, even when he was detached from the world, from his friends, from everyone. In the end, all he had left was himself, seeming as his two best friends had a thing for each-other and wouldn’t want him in the way most of the time soon.  
He sighed, shaking his head. Harry shut the book and placed it on his lap, firmly pressing it down with his palms as though in frustration. His face grew blank and his eyes glazed over as he glared at the near-by window splattered with rain-drops, smudging the view, though he could still spot the sparkling of stars. So beautiful, it’s as if they were dancing and envisioning an eerie pattern together. He could spot every minimalistic detail, taking in the fact he had nothing else to do, and watched as the stars pranced around.  
He shook his head once again, breaking out of his trance. He re-opened his book and resumed to the page he had left previously.  
His reading was interrupted by a faint sound, the shuffling of feet as far as he could tell. This alarmed him since he thought everyone was supposed to be asleep. He kept his face buried in the book, although his attention was diverted to the sound and he was straining his ears to hear it better. He oddly felt his heart racing as he felt someone settle onto the arm of the same armchair, just above him. He finally looked up from his book and found it was Hermione, now having opened a book of her own to read (Hogwarts, a History). He watched her chocolate brown eyes avert from one sentence to another in concentration and it was clear she was absorbed in the world of her book. Her slender legs were crossed and hovering just above the ground. She was dressed in her silk pink nightgown and knee-high white socks. He watched her for a few minutes until she closed her book and looked back at him, a faint pink blush gracing her face.  
“I’m sorry Harry… If I, you know- interrupted anything… I shouldn’t have gotten too close or anything-“  
Hermione’s blush grew redder as she was stammering, never letting her gaze avert to anything but Harry’s emerald eyes. Harry was suddenly brought back into reality as he opened his mouth so as to say something, but closed it shut again. He felt his heart pounding against his chest uncontrollably for a reason he couldn’t explain.  
“I just, couldn’t sleep. I usually just read in my bed at night, but I felt a change of atmosphere might lighten me up a bit more. You looked lonely here so I just thought… And I was kind of surprised to see someone else also wasn’t sleeping…”- Hermione hung her head and tapped on her book impatiently.  
Harry set his own book aside and placed his chin on his knees, looking up at Hermione who was now dangling strands of hair with her fingers.  
“It’s fine Hermione. I’m actually… quite happy you came…”- Harry sighed and closed his eyes. If it were anyone else, he would be irritated that they interrupted his alone time and thoughts. There was something about the thought of Hermione wanting to stay with him, just the two of them while everyone was fast asleep in the middle of the night. It was an alluring aspect. There was something about Hermione in his presence at this moment that he couldn’t quite grasp.  
“It is pretty lonely. I come here every night seeming as I can’t sleep at all…”  
Hermione looked down at him with a glimpse of enthusiasm and… sadness in her eyes.  
“I also can’t really sleep. It’s just… A lot’s been going on lately. Everything has a stressful tension around it, even when I’m doing something that makes me happy. I can’t seem to just shut my eyes without thinking of all the exams coming up, my grades, studying, V-Voldemort and…”- Hermione clasped her mouth and gasped. She coughed a little and laughed afterwards, rubbing the back of her neck and adjusting her nightgown right above her breasts.  
Harry watched her peculiar movements tentatively, frowning at the words his best friend said. An awkward silence danced around between the two, the only sound being the crackling of the fire in the background. They just kept staring at each-other.  
Harry compulsively grasped her soft hand and squeezed it tightly. Hermione squeezed his hand in return instantaneously as if it were an instinct.  
“It’s all going to be okay in the end, Hermione.”- Harry whispered reassuringly, seeing as his friend needed some form of alleviation, even if it sounded like the easiest and dumbest thing to say at the moment in his head. He could see she was sweaty and that her breathing had increased. How hadn’t he noticed it before? She had black circles beneath her eyes, her face was gaunt and she was alarmingly pale, features he himself had also obtained. Hermione was sure to be anxious and pressured the entire time. It wasn’t only him. And now he could notice that she needed somebody else, he could tell by the look on her face. Hermione smiled brightly at him and giggled sweetly.  
“Harry, c-can we go through this together?”  
Harry raised his eyebrows at the inclined enquiry towards him.  
“I mean, seeming as we both can’t sleep… I can see you’re struggling, Harry. I’m worried about you. You always seem so distanced from everyone else, and I just want to… I-I admit I sort of… need someone to go through with this, someone like me. To let everything out… Someone who would understand. To just…”-Hermione trailed off and squeezed his hand tighter. Harry himself blushed at her words. She was suggesting the very thing he was anticipating. He brushed off a strand of raven hair from his eyes and longingly gazed at Hermione. He had this tempting sensation surging through him the longer he gazed at her eyes. He was lost in the depths of those beautiful brown eyes with golden flecks visible in them… Hermione cleared her throat, snapping Harry out of his trance. She was frowning mildly.  
“So… is that a no or is that a yes..? I’m sorry if you wanted to be alone or anything… Guess I shouldn’t have interrupted you then.”- she sighed in defeat and attempted to retrieve but as her soft hand escaped his firm hold he swiftly grasped her wrist.  
“No! Hermione, I do want everything you said!”- Harry hurriedly and without thinking gasped out in desperation as Hermione sighed in relief and chuckled slightly. She sat down beside him, Harry moving aside so as to have enough space between them. Even-though the armchair wasn’t particularly wide, the both of them were thin so they fit in. He felt her thighs, through the thin silk material, brushing against him, causing his heart to pound profusely. They both leant against the armchair, a soft velvety texture caressing their backs. Hermione yawned heavily, not even trying to suppress it.  
“I can’t seem to think straight anymore. My anxiousness merely increases when I try to sleep. I-“  
Harry interrupted her by putting a finger to her mouth, it hurt to hear her broken voice, drained of happiness, when mere moments ago she was giggling… that sweet linger in her voice seemed to escape, and he wanted to cease it, to help, to help ease the pain before she could let out everything and break down. He wanted her to feel relieved and not shaken when she was actually ready to admit to everything. To admit to the now visible as if in sheer broad daylight hurt, pain, anxiousness. He didn’t want her to forcefully admit to the pain. He wanted her to have ultimate trust and faith in him, to let everything out as if it were easy, easy to confide in him. Easy, as he could show her that he did understand her struggles, he wanted to help. He wanted to experience the full splendor. His thoughts were racing, he was mildly sweating, and he had no idea what made him do it. Maybe the lust, the desperation, desperation for someone to cling to, someone to cling to him, someone he could rely on with his most vulnerable spot, someone for once in his life to feel ultimate trust in, to understand him, intimacy, to feel somebody else against him, to soothe the nightmares, to soothe his thoughts, to make his life better, to know somebody else was struggling, struggling with him, and to know he could make her better, as she would him-, that would make him the happiest man in the world.  
“Hermione, I have an idea. Why don’t you sleep with me in the boys dormitories? Nobody will notice, and if it makes you- us feel better then why not? And you don’t even need to worry about not being allowed in, you are, it’s just boys that aren’t trusted in the girls’ dormitories. We both need sleep desperately, and, I uh- just thought this might be a solution to our sleep deprivation.”- he blurted out.  
Hermione’s once glum eyes lit up and she let out a very uncharacteristic squeal, covering her face with her hands. She peeked out from behind them and once again, something uncharacteristic for her, showed him what he envisioned as a cheeky grin. Harry was feeling very uncomfortable and scratched the back of his neck, staring down at the carpet, realizing the embarrassing situation he had placed himself in. What was I thinking? Hermione sleep with me? He really craved it, but he just sounded stupid saying it, oblivious to what Hermione’s reaction would be. She also obviously fancies Ron- Oh God this is so awkward. He looked towards the window again, very suddenly finding the stars enthralling.  
“I wouldn’t mind Harry.”- she let out in an exhilarated whisper, replacing the dread and despair not so long ago. Harry instinctively snapped his neck to look in her direction. She was smiling broadly, making his heart flutter and easing his thoughts. Another quick-paced action for him, he entwined their hands together, excited and grinning, and lead her to the boys dormitories, her following him without anxiousness, both of them very careful not to make anybody up. When they were in front of Harry’s four-poster bed, Harry swooped her up like a feather, Hermione trying hard to suppress the urge to giggle so as not to wake up the boys, and laid her down gently and noiselessly on the soft mattress, only increasing the tension between them. Harry stared down at her beautiful slender figure covered by that pink silk dress gown. He slithered in the bed next to her, breathing heavily, something fortunately only Hermione could hear. Hermione’s back was turned against him. He interlocked his hands around her waist and pressed her back against his chest, placing his chin on her shoulder. Hermione didn’t resist and rested deeply in his embrace, clutching his arms as though willing him not to let go. For the first time in a long time, Harry shut his eyes, feeling affection, warmth, love… He wasn’t alone. For once, he let the warm clutches of sleep sweep him away into his own wonderland. 

“She listens for the sound of his breathing  
As she tries to calm the beating of her heart.  
She swallows down the fear that she’s feeling  
And reaches out to touch him in the dark.

Just another nightmare that came calling.  
One that comes back every now and then.  
She wakes up to find that she’s not falling,  
And seeks out the sweet comfort of his skin.

He shifts in the night to pull her close.  
And she nestles into the safety of his heat.  
It’s an unconscious act; this she knows.  
But she feels so secure in this warm retreat.

She won’t sleep for the rest of the night.  
She’s too caught up in his deep embrace.  
And she’s too tired to try to fight the fright.  
So in the protection of his arms she lays.”


End file.
